BP: Backing Britain with £18b Investment in Energy

Bernard Looney, CEO, BP, said: “We’re backing Britain. It’s been our home for over 110 years, and we’ve been investing in North Sea oil and gas for more than 50 years. We’re fully committed to the UK’s energy transition – providing reliable home-grown energy and, at the same time, focusing on the drive to net zero. And we have ambitious plans to do more and to go faster. Our plans go beyond just infrastructure – they see us supporting the economy, skills development and job opportunities in the communities where we operate. We are all in.”

These projected investment figures are in addition to the company’s significant operating spend in the UK. In 2019, prior to the pandemic, an estimated 0.5% of UK GDP was supported by its activities. BP also anticipates paying up to £1 billion in taxes for its 2022 North Sea profits, on top of around £0.25 billion that it has paid annually in other taxes in the UK in recent years.

The UK projects in which BP is looking to invest – and the wider activities supporting them – include:

North sea

Developing lower emission oil and gas projects to support near-term security of supply, for example, at the Murlach, Kate and Mungo fields around the BP-operated ETAP hub in the central North Sea and the Clair and Schiehallion fields West of Shetland; investing in exploration around its existing North Sea hubs; progressing asset electrification projects in the Central North Sea and West of Shetland to further reduce operational emissions and supporting the North Sea Transition Deal.

Offshore wind

In partnership with EnBW: developer of two 60-year offshore wind leases in the Irish Sea (combined potential generating capacity of 3GW); developer of a lease option (potential generating capacity of 2.9 GW) off the east coast of Scotland in the ScotWind round. Together, these three areas could generate enough energy to power over six million UK homes every year.

Additionally: investing in infrastructure, ports, harbours, and shipyards, including the construction of four ships to support the offshore wind projects across the UK, subject to technical and commercial due diligence. These new-builds are anticipated to involve an investment of more than £100 million and would be expected to support 500 associated jobs; committing more than £1 million, as part of the successful ScotWind bid with EnBW, to X-Academy in Scotland in a five-year deal, supporting both reskilling experienced workers and the creation of entry-level energy transition roles; making Aberdeen bp’s global operations and maintenance centre of excellence for offshore wind and creating up to 120 new direct jobs.

EV charging

Planning to invest £1 billion in electric vehicle charging in the UK over the next 10 years – BP’s largest-ever EV charging expansion – approximately tripling the number of bp’s UK charging points by 2030 and deploying more rapid and ultra-fast chargers in key locations. The investment is expected to support hundreds of new jobs in the UK.

Hydrogen

Planning to create two large-scale hydrogen production facilities: H2 Teesside (blue), and HyGreen Teesside (green). Together, these facilities are aiming to produce 1.5 GW of hydrogen by 2030 – 15% of the UK government’s 10 GW target by 2030. H2 Teesside could create more than 600 operational jobs and another 1200 construction jobs by 2027. BP has also signed an agreement with Redcar & Cleveland College in Redcar, Teesside, to support green skills and education initiatives on Teesside.

CCS

Leading the Northern Endurance Partnership, to serve the East Coast Cluster (ECC). The ECC has recently been named as one of the UK’s first CCS projects and aims to remove nearly 50% of all UK industrial cluster CO₂ emissions. Leading Net Zero Teesside Power (NZT Power) which could be the world’s first commercial-scale, gas-fired power station with carbon capture – with the ‎potential to deliver enough low-carbon, flexible electricity to power around 1.3 million homes. NZT Power could support more than 3000 jobs during construction and over 1000 jobs once operations begin.

Aberdeen

Working with Aberdeen City Council in a joint venture (JV) to deliver a scalable green hydrogen production, storage and distribution facility powered by renewable energy; partnering with the local authority to support their ambition for Aberdeen to become a climate positive city; working with the Port of Aberdeen on decarbonisation projects.